We got to the back of the building and stepped into the shadows of the trees. For a moment, I squinted into the darkness, trying to spot something that wasn’t there, and then Deva reached out and touched the wall. A door appeared out of thin air.
I gaped while she pulled it open with ease.
“How did you do that?” I asked. I’d been to this library a million times as a kid. I'd played all around the outside too as a child, but I’d never seen this door. Come to think of it, I’d never seen a door appear out of thin air at all.
Deva looked at me and grinned. “Magic. Now, head down the stairs, I’ll be right behind you.”
Okie dokie. I headed down a set of narrow, strange stairs. Sconces with flickering lights chased away most of the darkness, but I still ran my hand along the brick wall, not willing to hurt myself on stairs after all of my dangerous adventures today.
The stairs finally ended, and I looked around. In front of me sat a small, unoccupied desk with a big book on top, with shelves of ancient-looking books behind.
The smell of dust and old books was overwhelming. I looked at Deva, who nodded her head. “This is the secret section of the library.”
My heart beat a little faster as I stepped closer to a book on the desk. I reached out and touched the cover, and a tingling sensation went up my arm. I looked around, surprised at how big the room was.
The walls were lined with bookshelves, and in the center of the room was a large wooden table with four chairs, two of them occupied.
No, not just two people. Two specific people: Daniel and a woman. He looked completely focused on the book in front of him, but the woman’s attention was entirely on him. I wasn't normally a jealous person, but the woman looked like a model straight out of a bra commercial. Okay, okay, she wasn’t in her bra. Not exactly, but she had the tightest white blouse I’d ever seen, with a short skirt that looked painted on. Her blonde hair was pulled up at her nape, with two pencils sticking out of it, and she wore dark-rimmed glasses that looked absolutely fake. What was more, she looked at Daniel like the only thing she wanted in life was to take a bite out of him.
It was like she'd watched a couple of librarian pornos and had done her best to emulate them.
To say I wasn’t happy with the situation was an understatement.
Deva cleared her throat behind me, and they both jumped. Daniel's gaze swung to us, and his eyes widened. He jerked up out of his seat, then stepped away from the other woman.
I almost had to laugh, and if I hadn't been so green I might have. He stood there staring like he had no idea how to handle this situation. Which sort of bothered me, because he seemed a little bit guilty, but I couldn't be sure. He could've simply been startled. No, I didn’t like finding him anywhere near this woman, but at this point, I trusted him. There was no reason not to trust him, though his suspicious behavior wasn’t helping.
“W-we found something,” Daniel said, his voice a little off as he grabbed the book on the table and hurried toward me. He kissed me on the head, pulled me close, and shoved the book in my face all at once.
The librarian didn’t look the least bit happy. “Ah, is this the famous Emily?”
“Emma,” Daniel corrected her, sounding irritated.
“Emma,” she stretched out my name as though she tasted it. “You look older than I pictured.”
“She’s younger than me,” Daniel said, a protective gruffness filling his voice.
“Hmm.” She acted untroubled. “She doesn’t look it.”
I didn’t look at the book in front of me, instead, I sized her up and down. “What’s your name?”
“Mari,” she said with a smile.
I returned her smile. “It’s strange, I’ve never, ever heard of you before.”
Her face turned sour so fast it was almost comical, but she recovered quickly. “Well,Iheard all about your triumphant return to town as Karma, after your failed marriage, and failed business, of course. What does it feel like to return to Mystic Hollow on your hands and knees?”
I laughed. “My life's amazing. How about yours?”
Again, she looked enraged.
“Daniel, does this book have the info we need?” Deva asked, her voice cold as she pointed at the book in his hand.
He nodded. “It’s the only one with information about Karma.”
Deva flashed her teeth. “Then, we’re going to check this one out. Mari, it was nice to see you. I’m glad we got a chance to visit this dark and lonely part of town.”
Mari looked angry again, but then her expression changed. She sauntered up to our group and put a hand on Daniel’s arm, “Babe, if you want to stay and read the book here, I can help you with it.”
